FERGUSON, Mo. – One of the areas hardest hit by last year's unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, that followed the police shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown is getting a little sprucing.

Hundreds of volunteers converged Monday morning on West Florissant Avenue for a litter-pickup and weeding effort spearheaded by KMOX Radio personality Charlie Brennan ahead of the Aug. 9 one-year anniversary of Brown's death.

An organizer, Roy Gillespie, says the cleanup was less about beautification than it was about building regional unity by drawing in Ferguson residents and outsiders to pitch in.

The hub of Monday's event was the site of a former QuikTrip store that was looted and torched the night after Brown was shot and killed roughly a half mile away. The property will become a job training and placement center.